


we're gonna be starting up trouble

by dramaturgicallycorrect



Series: urban werewolves lirry [2]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Human Louis, M/M, Werewolf Harry, Werewolf Liam, Werewolf Niall
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-30
Updated: 2016-07-30
Packaged: 2018-07-26 23:30:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7594606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dramaturgicallycorrect/pseuds/dramaturgicallycorrect
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>“You're going to be brilliant,” he says, running a soothing hand across Harry’s back.</i> </p>
<p><i>“It's fine, just hate the eclipse is all.” Harry gives what seems like an involuntary shudder. The thought of losing his wolf, just for a night, has had him on edge for quite some time, has had Liam worried about him. Too few things scare Harry for it not to be a big deal.</i> </p>
<p><i>Liam’s been looking forward to it, personally, the way he looks forward to a vacation. With an immeasurable amount of excitement and the knowledge that it’s not going to last forever. </i> </p>
<p><i>Not that he’s going to tell Harry.</i> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>[Or an urban werewolves Lirry timestamp.]</p>
            </blockquote>





	we're gonna be starting up trouble

**Author's Note:**

> as requested, a UWL timestamp! a bit too long to put on tumblr.  
> probably... won't make much sense without reading the first one, but there you have it!

Harry holds a pack meeting the night before on his own, ritual apparently stating David step down to test him. Harry’s close to taking over the pack, but Liam’s not sure how long it’ll be. His pull as an alpha is stronger every day, the pack looks to him more every day. There’ll be a Challenge soon -- Harry’s said they were more violent in the _old days_ , however long ago that was, but these days it’s all talking and signing legal documents.

He paces a meandering path around Liam, his hands clasped behind his back. It's so rare that Liam sees Harry nervous, he almost has to laugh. It makes Harry a little more human, a little less larger than life.

Liam doesn't laugh though, because that'd be rude, and Harry really does look like he's bricking it, stood in the middle of the common room, eyeing those few who have already gathered and pulling at his lip. They’ll sleep here tonight, in the heart of the den, available to anyone who might need them.

“You're going to be brilliant,” he says, stopping him by the hips and maneuvering to run a soothing hand across Harry’s back.

“It's fine, just hate the solar eclipse is all.” Harry gives what seems like an involuntary shudder. The thought of losing his wolf, just for a night, less than twelve hours, really, has had him on edge for quite some time, has had Liam worried about him. Too few things scare Harry for it not to be a big deal.

Liam’s been looking forward to the solar eclipse, personally, the way he looks forward to a vacation. With an immeasurable amount of excitement and the knowledge that it’s not going to last forever.

Not that he’s going to tell Harry.

“Doesn't seem so bad,” Liam says instead.

Harry throws an impressively dubious look at him, and gives a sarcastic, “Yeah?”

“I mean think of all the things we could do. Go to a footie game, travel.” He clears his throat and drops his voice, “Have sex, you know, stuff like that.”

He gives a casual shrug that's meant to make Harry laugh, but instead the hesitant smile on Harry’s face slips away completely.

“You regret it, don't you?” he asks, his voice low enough to sound like he's in mourning.

“Being a wolf? No, I just -- ” Liam breaks off, shrugging, not entirely sure how to put it into words.

“Miss being normal.”

“I don’t know if it’s that. It’s -- I know I can do all the same things. I know I can have whatever life I want if I find the balance you’ve got. But it just reminds me of all the work I’ve got to do.”

Harry turns away from their pack as they slowly start to filter in more, gathering at the edge of the room informally or grabbing drinks from the kitchen on the other side before it’s time. He wraps his hands around Liam’s hips, his thumb tracing the skin under his shirt.

“But it would be easier if you were human again,” he guesses.

“Easier, maybe. But not better. Wouldn’t have had this.” Liam nods after the pack, who have become so important to him, who make him feel welcome and loved and at home. It’s not a feeling Liam can describe either, he just knows it in the deepest part of his core.

He looks up at Harry, the crux of it all. He never feels more settled than with Harry, he’s never felt a warmth in his chest looking at a person, an overwhelming need to cling to someone and never let go. He doesn’t know what it is, not sure if it’s a wolf thing, but definitely sure it’s a Harry thing.

Liam adds, “Wouldn’t have had you.”

“I think we’d have found our way to each other,” Harry says, suddenly quite serious, that familiar level of intensity reaching his eyes. “Wolf or not.”

“Yeah?” Liam laughs and sings, “Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm not a wolf?”

“Yes.” Harry kisses him sweetly, says simply, “I love you.”

Liam blinks after him, astounded, as Harry moves to be received by the pack as they filter in, scenting and hugging and grasping, to spread the comfort he knows they seek. He says it like he’s said it a hundred times before, like this one’s no different. Maybe he thinks he has, maybe he’s said it in some wolf way Liam hasn’t learned yet, but to hear it explicitly.

That warmth takes its place in the center of his chest, though it rarely ever leaves, and blooms like it’s flowing through his veins, down to his fingers and toes. He’d bet money that scent he gives, the one just for Harry, permeates the room too. He’s beyond being embarrassed over how blatant it is.

Liam goes to stand next to Niall, fit himself with the rest of the pack, but Harry stops him. “There’s -- a place for you. At my side. If you want.”

Liam raises his eyebrows. “Are you -- you’re sure?”

Harry nods seriously. “I’d like it. They’ll expect it. But it’s only if you want.”

“Why do they expect it?”

Harry grins and shrugs, not because he doesn’t know but because he wants to play it off. Liam’s going to hold him accountable for it, but Harry turns and starts the meeting.

They sit side by side before the pack, their strength and confidence radiating out as Harry takes questions with a determined nod and answers them with compassion.

It’s nothing they haven’t faced before -- there’s a total eclipse strong enough to affect them every few years, but it still appears to set everyone on edge. They don’t know what makes the moon’s position take what belongs to them, and it’s the fear of the unknown that hurts them the most.

They’re anxious to be comforted on a vulnerable night, one that leaves the den defenseless, that leaves them feeling like half of them is missing. Even if Liam doesn’t feel distressed, he empathizes.

Liam watches Harry, a smile quick to his lips any time Harry looks over at him for confirmation, ready to nudge Harry’s knee with his own when he’s rambling too much and he looks like he’s lost the plot, stepping in when Harry can’t find the right words to say. Liam’s proud to be at his side, proud to watch him take care of them in the way only he can.

The atmosphere in the room is satisfied by the time the pack shuffles out, paying their respects and thanks to both Harry and Liam. Liam nearly chuckles again, feels a bit like a politician’s wife. But he thinks he’s just as responsible for their safety and well-being as Harry is.

He feels bolstered from within, like not only is he wholly assuaged by Harry’s time and attention, but his wolf is. Sometimes Liam found it hard to sort the pack feeling from his own feelings, until he realized he didn’t have to. The calm that settles over the pack is made in part by Liam’s confidence too.

Liam suddenly knows what it is, can’t keep his eyes off him because he knows what it is.

Harry laughs at Liam, rubbing the back of his neck with something like self-consciousness, and says, “What?”

“I love you too.” He's been edging around it for quite some time, finding things about Harry to love, but all of that adds up to this single truth.

Harry seems struck dumb by that, looking at Liam with something like awe in his face until he starts to make a move toward worry.

Liam covers his mouth, already anticipating his response, and buzzing because he does know Harry that well. “It’s not because you’re my alpha, it’s not because you said it first. Harry.”

Harry nips at his palm until he moves it, chases after his fingers, biting playfully, until he’s leaned in close enough to Liam to reach his lips. Liam’s utterly at peace, practically purring with it, to have defined where they stand, to know what this is, to know who they belong to.

So Harry ruins it by pulling away, and Liam swallows his whine at the loss. He looks stressed, looking between Liam and the door. “I’ve got to -- report back to David, okay? I’ll be right back. Don’t move, from this exact spot. Rooted here. Forever.”

“Right here?”

Harry points. “Right there. Actually, two inches to the left -- there it is.”

Liam chuckles, hesitant to see him gone, but the quicker he goes, the quicker he returns. “Go on,” he says so Harry starts loping across the room.

“Love you,” Harry shouts from the doorway, flapping a hand in a desperate wave, even though Liam could hear him just fine at a normal volume. Liam grins.

\--

The day of the eclipse is tenser than the day before. Whatever good was done at the pack meeting settles them enough that there are only some isolated moments of panic. Just overnight Harry looks exhausted, dark circles under his eyes that wouldn’t be present from just a single night’s lack of sleep -- and Liam has it on good authority Harry’s slept. But he’s stalwart in the face of it all, a pillar for their pack from what Liam’s seen, which isn’t much, given he’s been glued to David’s side all morning.

Liam’s been a bit achy himself, nearly reminiscent of the sort of fever he felt before his first change, but nothing nearly that bad. Not enough to call out sick to work, just enough to be miserable staring at a computer all day. He’s called out anyway, just in case Harry needed him.

The door opens just as Liam’s washing up from the lunch he ate in Harry’s flat by himself, Liam turns, already disappointed it’s not Harry, but buries that. “Niall, hey.”

He looks around first, eyes darting nervously, before he says anything. “Hey, I just wanted -- is Harry in?”

“No, he’s gone to deal with the meltdown downstairs. I can have him pop in when he gets back, though.”

Niall chews at his thumb for a bit as he walks in, clearly deciding something. Liam waits with the patience Harry would show, though he’s starting to worry.

“Actually, I came for you.”

“Oh, nice, I reckon I’m a bit bored with Harry doing all that pack stuff. Wish I could have tagged along, really.” Stuck in Harry’s flat, he sort of feels useless, powerless. He’s always got to do something, and waiting feels like a waste. When he gets idle, he starts to worry.

Niall follows him into the flat and pops himself onto the counter as Liam fixes up the last of the washing up. “You did a good job last night. With the pack stuff.”

“I didn’t really expect to sort of. Do anything? But Harry told me we were the, uh -- ” Liam searches for the phrase, but Niall fills it in.

“You’re the dominant pair, yeah. Most packs have ‘em, usually the alpha and their, y’know, partner.”

“Not really sure what it all means.” He could tell last night Harry was stepping around the frank truth of their relationship, that he didn’t want to scare Liam off with whatever the weight of this position is. It still feels early, it’s been half a year, but he’s as good as locked in. This is his life now.

“You’re like. Michelle Obama.”

“Michelle Obama.”

“He’s the Queen, you’re Prince Philip. Whatever. You support him, you support us. Harry gets shit done, you nod after him. Give us sugary treats before bed and say don’t tell mum, that sort of stuff.”

Liam blinks. “That’s -- ”

Niall’s quick to clarify, his face scrunching like he’s worried he’s scared Liam too. “It’s not required or anything, like David doesn’t have a -- like, a plus one, you know. It’s fine if you don’t want to.”

“No, it’s fine. That’s what I want,” Liam says, not entirely surprised by the admission. “The pack, I just want to help.”

Niall grins. “You do.”

“They’re not, like, weirded out that I’m bitten?”

“ _We’re_ not,” Niall says, with a little too much emphasis on the pack that Liam figures he means David doesn’t.

He knows there are still some nights where David and Harry have it out over Liam because Harry comes home in a strop, almost aggressive in the way he possessively scents Liam, like he’s proving a point.

Liam can’t entirely blame David for doubting, there’s still a mountain of things Liam needs to work on, there are still moments where Harry has to look out for him, where his wolf steps out of line. But Liam’s restless in his pursuit for the balance, in his dedication to the pack.

“And Harry’s not,” Niall continues. “He trusts you, I trust you. So I need you to do me a favor, okay?”

“Anything.”

“I just wanted you to be aware, and Harry’d kill me if he knew I was telling you this, so maybe just don’t tell him. But it’s gonna be hard on him. Tonight.”

Liam hums, already thinking about the tired curve of Harry’s shoulders. “Yeah, he’s a bit nervy, isn’t he?”

“More’n that,” Niall says with a wince. “It hits an alpha worse than the rest of us -- he’s losing his own wolf, but also everyone else’s. Harry’s getting close to taking over, so his connection with us is stronger than ever. It hurts like a bitch.”

Liam’s stomach feels like it drops. That explains everything, and it hurts. It can’t possibly hurt Liam more than it hurts Harry, but he figures it’s a different kind of hurt, a heartbreak on Harry’s behalf.

“Shit,” he mutters.

Niall nods. “I didn’t want you to be caught off guard, but it’ll be rough. He’ll need ya.”

“I appreciate that,” Liam says. He gets it, he knows Harry doesn’t like Liam to see him vulnerable. Liam’s grateful to have him as a rock, because Liam needs him constantly. But he’s always wanted to be the same for Harry, he’s always wanted Harry to be comfortable enough to need him.

“You doing okay?” Niall asks, eyeing him suspiciously.

“Yeah, yeah, for sure,” Liam says, and he means it.

Liam admits, he’s taking it a bit better than the pack. There’s no spring in his step, but he’s fine. He’s. At peace. It’s a bit rich, really, an eclipse is what made him this, the blood moon from a lunar eclipse, and a different sort of eclipse is taking it away.

“You’ll be okay? Do you want to stay with us?”

“I’ll be a basket case,” Niall answers with a self-deprecating roll of his eyes. “It’s better if I just keep to meself, honestly.”

“Niall’s grumpy,” Harry says, suddenly leaned up against the door. Liam worries just how much he might have heard, but his face doesn’t betray anything but exhaustion and the joke he’s telling. “Just a grumpy old man at the eclipse.”

Niall grunts, straddling amused and unimpressed. “You’re one to talk. Grumpy old man at the moon.”

Harry laughs something tired and shoos him toward the door, only to stop and scent him before he lets him go. Niall doesn’t say anything about it, no trace of taking the piss, probably because he knows Harry needs it.

Liam opens his arms and Harry crosses the room to fold himself around Liam, bury his face deep in his neck, and stay there so long Liam’s a bit worried he’s fallen asleep.

He rubs Harry’s back gently. “Think you need a kip, babe, how about we lie down for a bit?”

Harry groans.

“That’s an order,” Liam says, peeling him off to get a good look at him. He looks worse and he looks like he knows it. “From your, uh, you know, obviously not your alpha, but your boyfriend.”

“So that’d be worse than disobeying my alpha.”

“Exactly. I’ll withhold kisses.”

Harry squints at him. “Can’t kiss me if I’m sleeping either.”

Liam pauses. “That’s -- well, that’s true.” Then he nearly frogmarches Harry to their bedroom, laying him down gently on the bed to wrench off his boots, to make him as comfortable as he needs to be. He sweeps the hair back from Harry’s face to kiss him.

“Taking care of me,” Harry says, a soft smile taking over his face, returning some of the brightness Liam loves so much to battle the darkness the eclipse has brought.

“Owe you a bit of that, don’t I?”

Sometimes he feels a bit helpless, though, that he doesn’t truly know what Harry needs, that they’re not suffering on the same level. Harry’s been the perfect resource for Liam, but all Liam can give him is his attention, soothing touches, love. He hopes that’s enough.

He cuddles up behind Harry to be a solid presence at his back, letting his arm go easily when Harry drags it over to hold to his chest.

“Niall’s not grumpy,” Harry mumbles.

“Hm?”

“Just doesn't like anyone to know he's struggling.”

Liam pokes him, lightly accusatory. “Sounds familiar.”

“M’worried,” Harry confesses, but Liam can smell that on him, has been able to for a week. “I know it’s gonna be okay, nothing’s really happened before, but. Feels like it rips a hole into your chest. Big ole piece of you missing and you can’t find it, falling over ‘cause you’ve lost your balance with the loss.”

“I won’t let you fall over.”

Harry hums. “Dunno, I’m pretty clumsy without my wolf.”

“Can’t picture that, honestly.”

“You’ll have to tell Gemma that yourself,” he’s barely able to say, “she’ll never believe me.”

“I’ll tell her whatever you like, okay, just get some rest?” He presses a kiss to Harry’s hair. “Love you.” He nearly says it again just because he’s able to, because he thinks Harry needs to hear it.

But Harry mumbles something like love in return, relaxing against Liam, like the relief of stress slowly deflates him. Liam’s happy to be here for him, to comfort him when no one else can, but given the choice, he’d rather not put Harry in this position.

\--

Liam wakes to his phone ringing in his back pocket. He’s got five missed texts from Louis, explaining the call. He answers it quickly, quietly so Harry doesn’t stir at the disturbance, “Two seconds.”

Harry’s still knocked out, his face scrunched like something in his dreams displeases him. Liam is hesitant to leave him, but sneaks out of bed anyway, out of the room, and Harry’s either letting him, or he’s so out of it he can’t tell.

“You here?” he whispers.

“I’m downstairs, lad.” Louis adopts a ridiculous gruff voice, “I’ve brought a bat, m’gonna fook’em all up, anyone who dares cross this line ‘ere.”

“Shut up, I’m coming down.”

“All right, see you in seven seconds.” He rings off.

It does take a bit longer than seven seconds, even on a night where Liam feels slower than he’s used to with the wolf. It’s the first real consequence he’s felt, sluggishness, some of that exhaustion that’s been painting Niall and Harry’s faces. He didn’t quite imagine it’d ever hit him, probably because he’s not too bothered by the eclipse.

He finds Louis about to wrap himself around Anjali, who’s young enough that this is her first eclipse. “Bring it in, love,” he says, shifting his head to the side subtly so she can press her nose there.

He’s learned so much, folded in with their pack as best he could without being a wolf, somehow able to understand and respect how important it is. Louis’ just pack, and he’s here for them on their most vulnerable night.

“Go on and find your mum, okay? Don’t make that face, everyone needs their mum on the eclipse.” He looks over at Liam with a questioning glance and shrugs like, _that’s probably right, isn’t it?_

Liam nods and gives a thumbs up as Anjali thanks him. She turns quickly to Liam, mumbles her hello to him into his neck as she scents him, then shuffles back off to her flat on the second floor.

Louis props his hands on his hips, surveying the foyer critically. “Christ, it’s like a fucking tuberculosis ward in here.”

“Tommo,” he censures. He gives Louis a cursory examination, just to make sure he hasn’t actually brought a bat -- he hasn’t.

Louis squawks in his own defense, gesturing around him. “I’m just saying, everyone’s walking around like they’re bloody terminal.”

“It’s hard, losing the wolf.” He can’t stop thinking about how Harry described it, gruesome, a hole in his chest. They’re all helpless to it.

“You didn’t have one for most of your life, you were just fine.”

Liam knows what that means, it means _Louis_ ’ just fine without one. And he is, Liam wouldn’t wish it on him, but it’s part of what Liam is now. It’s not something he would get rid of, even if he could. It’s come to mean too much to him. And it’s not that Louis is deficient without a wolf, it’s not that Liam’s any better. But Liam can’t go back to that life.

“It’s not even worldwide,” Louis adds, “like the last one you could only see in, like, Micronesia or something.”

Liam tilts his head, the corners of his mouth lifting. “I didn’t know that.”

Louis points at him seriously. “I googled it. Don’t get excited.”

He doesn’t have to do that, he doesn’t have to take an interest, but he does. He’s not obvious about it, he’s just drops little hints like that, to let Liam knows he cares. It’s part of the reason Harry invited him over, it’s part of the reason the pack trusts him. He’ll help until the sun rises again and their wolves are given back to them.

“Thanks for coming to help us out.”

Louis nods, disbelief taking over his face. “Can't believe I'm on the werewolf brute squad.”

“You _are_ the werewolf brute squad,” Liam jokes. But it’s also sort of. True. There’s no one else they trust to be their guardian, as much as Louis can help. It honestly might not be much, but it’s something.

“That’s right.”

“I'm serious,” Liam says, “it already feels better, having you here.”

Louis’ cheeks pink as his head turns and his hand flaps at Liam. “Go on, bring me to your children. I’ve brought all of your Pixar films, an entire bag full of candy to rot their teeth. Big night, Payno!”

They sweep through the den to gather the five kids who are too young to be affected by the eclipse, instead of sending them off to a weeknight sleepover or hiring out sitters like they do on full moons. Louis’ll pull out all his best big brother tricks. They’ll be safe while their parents and older siblings are weak, sleepless, and worried.  

The little ones feel the tense fear that’s laced the pack leading up to it, they’ve been to meetings. The kids aren’t idiots, Liam thinks, but on some level, they know this is what they need to do.

Louis gathers them into a spare flat, the floor littered with blankets and pillows, enough to build a fort, he suggests innocently and throws a wink over at Liam. Lux looks unconvinced where she stands away from him, pajama’d, sleepy, clutching at a blanket that’s too small to cover her. Liam’s never seen her take much to anyone in the pack but her parents and Harry.

She approaches Liam and whispers, “Where’s Harry?”

He crouches down to her level, careful to hide his surprise that she’s come to see him on her own. “It’s past his bedtime, he’s asleep.”

She widens her eyes. “It’s so early for grownups.”

“Well, he didn’t eat all his vegetables at dinner, so what was I supposed to do?”

She giggles, throwing him an unimpressed look worthy of Niall. “You’re silly, Liam.”

“That’s true,” Liam admits, “I shouldn’t have said that. Harry loves vegetables. He’s just a bit tired, like your mum.”

She frowns deeply. “I wanted to show him my howl. It’s really good, I promise.”

“I believe you. How about we show him first thing tomorrow morning? I’ve got to go check on him, but you could show Louis your howl? I reckon he’d like that.”

“Does Louis howl?”

“If you ask him real nicely, I bet he might. You and the others will have to show him how it’s done.”

She nods seriously, like she’s thinking real hard about what she’s got to do.

Liam excuses himself to sidle up next to Louis. It’s almost time, he can feel a desperate tug in his chest, like his wolf is struggling, desperate. “I’ve gotta go. Come get me if you need me, all right?”

“Wait, Payno.” He grabs Liam by the shoulders and hauls him in, presses his face into his neck as he hugs him. Liam’s startled for a moment, but he relaxes into it quickly until Louis’ had enough.

He wonders if Louis can feel the worry, if he’s got that same feeling that the pack’s on edge. He always wonders how much Louis can feel without a wolf, but he hasn’t found a way to ask him. He closes the door to the flat, climbs the stairs, grinning at the sounds of little howls echoing behind him.

He swings by Niall’s on his way back to his and Harry’s, finds him curled up in a blanket on the sofa, his eyes so glazed that he’s probably not actually watching whatever match is on the television. He blinks furiously when he sees Liam, scooting down into the sofa like he can disappear, pulling the blanket over his head and moaning, “Nooo, Liaaaaam.”

“Harry sold you out, that’s what you get when you sell him out. Have you had enough water?”

“Do I need water?”

“I dunno, I just feel like everyone should stay hydrated.”

Niall laughs quietly, “Yeah, I’ll take some water, Payno.”

Liam complies, happy to take care of Niall too, for everything Niall’s done for him. He’s always so conscious of his debt of gratitude, though in reality nobody would let him cash it in.

“Ta,” Niall says, tipping some of the water back before cradling the cup to his chest. “You’re good.”

Liam takes it for a dismissal, doesn’t want Niall to feel any more uncomfortable than he already is. “Okay, you know where I’m at if you need me.”

“Liam,” he calls, stopping Liam at the door. He’s got a serious look on his face, one that almost rivals Harry’s best one. “You’re good.”

All he can think to say is, “Thanks.”

He only wants the rest of them to be proud of him, he’s always aiming to prove himself. That the chance they’ve given him is deserved, that he’s not the monster from his nightmares. If a glass of water here and there is going to help his case, he’ll do it gladly. It’s not always enough that Harry loves him, it’s gotta be himself too, it’s gotta be the rest of the pack.

He gets Harry a glass of water too, once he’s back in their kitchen; it nearly slips out of his hand when the first lick of pain runs down his body. The eclipse sort of sneaks up on him in the way the full moon doesn’t. He thought there’d be some sort of crescendo, but it just happens upon him.

Liam expects more to come, the wolf to be torn from him painfully, to punish Liam for having been at peace with the idea of losing his wolf. But after that first moment, after what he thinks is the initial struggle of the wolf to remain, it’s easy.

It’s usually the wolf fighting for control and Liam having to relinquish, but the other way around feels different. Liam doesn’t fight, he lets the wolf fade away from him like a receding tide. The world that greets him when he opens his eyes is quiet, still, almost unnaturally so until Liam realizes he’s not meant to hear the world in surround sound. This is the way it’s supposed to be.

It feels. Weird. It feels wrong. He can’t get hold of Harry’s scent, he can’t feel his pack. He doesn’t remember feeling this empty before -- he’s sure he wasn’t this empty before. But now he’s forgotten how to fill up the rest of him in the wolf’s absence.

He can hear Harry shout, a brief strangled thing laced with pain. Liam drops his glass into the sink and goes running for him.

Harry writhes in bed, twisting up the sheets around him. His teeth are clenched like he’s trying to keep from shouting again, but he softens and croaks, “Liam.”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, I’m here,” Liam says, crawling on the bed and pulling Harry close to him.

His eyes flash gold, sputtering like Morse code, as his wolf makes its fight too. He squeezes his eyes shut and tries to scent Liam for all it’s worth, but Liam knows it’s not going to be enough.

The last time he held Harry as he was shaking apart, Liam nearly lost him. Liam strokes at Harry’s hair, keeps him pressed close, that’s all he really knows how to do.

“Do you feel it, Liam?” he whispers, his voice shaking unsteadily. “They’re in pain.”

“Don’t fight it, Harry,” Liam soothes. “Let it go, it’ll be okay.”

“Okay,” Harry mumbles before he grunts in pain again, squeezing Liam’s arm rough enough to hurt him now that the wolf’s gone, but Liam lets him. Harry sounds like he's going through hell, and there's not a chance Liam’s letting go now. That’s always been the secret, he thinks -- don’t fight it. Let nature take its course, as it were, and Harry knows that better than any of them. He lets go.

Liam holds Harry even after he isn't shaking anymore, after he's sure the wolf is gone from him, and they're left alone, just the two of them, for the first time.

Liam’ll put the call out soon, gather everyone in the common room upstairs for strength. He’ll stand at Harry’s side and support him where he can, give strength to their pack, he’ll be proud to do it. But they’ll have to wait for Harry, just this once.

Harry noses at his neck, still finds a home there, kissing him softly wherever his mouth connects. He still gets Liam’s blood pumping, his heart racing. He still blooms warmth in Liam’s chest.

“Hmm, look at that,” Liam says.

Harry resurfaces, eyeing Liam warily. “What?”

“Still in love with you.”

Harry kisses him, swiftly, confidently on the lips. He still tastes the same, he still sounds the same, just exhausted, when he says, “Never doubted. Love you.”

Liam squeezes him, grateful. “How’re you feeling?”

Harry thinks about it, seriously, before he decides, “Like it's going to be okay.”

Liam believes that that's the truth, that Harry really feels that, that Liam makes him feel that. Half of Harry is missing, a critical half, but he’s going to be okay. Liam supports him, because Harry fills him where he doesn’t feel whole, and he should return the favor.

Liam’s not in a hurry to surrender him, if he's going to be a bit selfish about it. Harry makes him feel so warm and safe, and Liam's too selfish not to take advantage of his sole attention while he can.

And if he doesn’t do this for Harry, Harry won’t do it for himself. He’s going to give himself to the pack until he can’t stand, like he did all day today, but Liam’s here to look out for him. That’s his place.

“We can rent a cottage on the Isle of Wight this summer,” Harry says, cuddling back into his chest. “If that's what you're after.”

Liam is baffled for a moment before he places the reference, back again with _When I’m 64_ , a shiver running through him at the thought of living it out. “Maybe let’s stick to the mainland first, see how that goes, hm?”

Harry nods slowly, his hair tickling Liam’s throat. “Whatever you want. We can do it all.”

Liam agrees. He’s got a lot of work ahead of him, a lot more to look forward to on the other side of the eclipse.

\--

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you very much for reading. If you need me, I'm [here.](http://wickershire.tumblr.com)


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